The Most Impressive CD Mastering for Musicians

Analog mastering is one of the best kept secrets of the best mastering engineers now. As most everything is recorded in the digital realm, top producers will do something called layback mastering. This is where the digital version is put back to an analog signal in order to be mastered through analog processors, though a lot of times it is also recorded to an two-track system in order to get the richness that analog tape gives to the recording. It also takes the harshness away from digital recordings, and can round out the low end giving the bottom frequencies that rich analog sound.

There are pros and cons but the advantages are worth it. Analog mastering often does cost a bit more than basic all digital mastering, as it takes additional time and there are other costs for the analog tape, but for serious projects, it can be the end step in getting the top quality for the record. Since digital recordings can seem more brittle to a lot of listeners because regardless of how loud the sound gets, digital always gives you purely digital reproduction. Analog tape, on the other hand, saturates as the DB increases in level, so heigh end peaks are smoothed over instead of clipping, which becomes a warm, rich sound as the harmonic series is balanced out. To the listener, this sound is much more pleasing. Also, an increased input song will result in a bigger effect. Since the top ranges soften up first, this transilates that as the signal increases, the highs naturally smooth out a bit, resulting in a less harsh, and a nicer recording.

There are many mastering studios around the country that have the equipment to do analog mastering, however, it also requires you have a mastering engineer with the background to get optimal end product possible with the tools. I have tested out a few recording studios and one of best quality is www.stevethomasmastering.com. He is a top layback CD mastering engineer, yet he also has done 1000s of albums as a mixing engineer as well. But his quality is similar to some of the most pricey mastering houses in the United States. If you already have someone you are using that’s great. But, I would certainly to check him out. Seriously!